On 31 March 1960, a Boeing
B-47E (sn 52-1414), suffered an inflight explosion and structural failure
over the city of Little Rock, Arkansas. Three of the four crewmembers
and two civilians on the ground lost their lives. The aircraft was
based with the 384th Bomb Wing (SAC), 545th Bombardment Squadron, Little
Rock AFB.

Boeing B-47 similar to the
one that exploded over the city of Little Rock. Courtesy
of the Boeing Airplane Company

Most of the
information regarding the cause of the crash has been redacted from the
publicly releaseable portions of the accident report. However,
the following passage was found in SACP 62-1 "Headquarters SAC Analysis
of B-47 Accidents":

"A B-47 was
climbing after takeoff in day VFR weather. There had been an
extended period of no interphone communication, during which the
copilot had been concentrating on receiving 'Noah's Ark' traffic.
At about 15,000 feet, the copilot suddenly realized that the aircraft
was in a very steep left bank, that the nose was well below the
horizon, and that the airspeed was excessive. He pulled the
throttles to idle, punched the interphone button and shouted at the
aircraft commander. Almost immediately, the nose came up, the wings
leveled, and the aircraft disintegrated. In the cockpit section,
which had separated intact from the rest of the aircraft, the copilot
tried to eject, but the clamshell initiator pin had not been
removed. The copilot then unfastened his seat belt. The
canopy blew off at about 10,000 feet. The unconscious copilot was
thrown out at 4,000 feet and his parachute opened automatically.
The aircraft commander ejected at 2,000 feet, but his parachute had
been fused by fire and he died upon impact. The fourth man was
found near the wreckage and did not survive. The navigator was
killed in his position. The falling wreckage killed two civilians
and caused serious damage to property."

Surveying this crash site
(well, actually there were four of them!) proved to be a study in how the
scars of a disaster can be healed without leaving any traces of the catastrophe
for those who follow.

The scene of the worst destruction,
at the intersection of Maryland and Summit streets, is now a parking lot
for Arkansas Children's Hospital. Nearby, Interstate 630 nearly obliterated
the spot where the right wing destroyed two houses.

The 1 April 1960 edition
of the Arkansas Gazette contained front page articles on the crash.Copyright Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Scenes From The Crash Site

Personal Photographs Courtesy of Mr. George Blythe

Above (left and right) and Left: A woman
was killed and her home heavily damaged when the nose section of the bomber
struck the rear of the house.

Above (left and right): When the main section
of fuselage came down, it exploded, creating a crater nearly 6 1/2 feet
deep and 35 feet in diameter. The blast destroyed or damaged several
houses and left one civilian man dead.

Aerial photograph of the
site near Maryland and Summit streets. Destroyed and damaged
houses can be seen around the intersection. The crater was
believed created by the tail section, and was 45 feet around and 25
feet deep. This photograph looks north; the top area shown is now
part of the Arkansas Children's Hospital parking lot. (UPI Photo
via Craig Fuller at AAIR)

This house on Maryland
Street was struck by portions of the bomber and set ablaze. Fire
also destroyed the 1953 Mercury behind the tree in the background.
(UPI Photo)